Panaji, Jul 1: The body of a 50-year-old man was found in a forest patch of Goa a couple of days ago while that of his wife and minor son were recovered off Devbag beach in neighbouring Karnataka, with police suspecting it may be a case of mass suicide.

An official said the man, identified as Shyam Patil, was a labour contractor and was reportedly reeling under debts he had taken from institutions as well as individuals.

"Patil's body was found hanging from a tree in a forest in Quepem taluka in south Goa on Thursday. The corpse of his wife Jyoti (37) and 12-year-old son were spotted off Devbag beach in Karwar in Karnataka the same day," he said.

"Prima facie, it seems like a case of mass suicide. The family lived in Chicalim village, some 15 kilometres away from Panaji. As per neighbours, they had left for Karwar on Wednesday at 8:30pm," he added.

Patil had sent a voice message to his friends and a relative claiming his wife and son had committed suicide and had said he too was ending his life, the police official informed.

"A note has been recovered from Patil's car in which he said he was ending his life due to a financial crisis. Further probe into the case is underway," the official added.

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Thane (PTI): The Thane police have uncovered a "contract killing" plot and arrested four persons, including the victim's younger brother, who allegedly hired the assailants and lodged the complaint to mislead investigators and hide his role in the murder, officials said on Sunday.

The victim, identified as Paresh Tolaram Patil (40), was hacked to death on May 12 over a property dispute, and his brother allegedly paid Rs 10 lakh to the contract killers, an official said.

The same day, Naresh Tolaram Patil (37), an auto-rickshaw driver residing in the Bhiwandi area of Maharashtra's Thane district, lodged a police complaint alleging that his elder brother Paresh had been murdered by unidentified persons.

According to Naresh, his brother was riding his motorcycle to work at Vasai in neighbouring Palghar district when the unidentified assailants intercepted him and assaulted him with sharp weapons, in-charge Superintendent of Police Anmol Mittal said.

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Following the complaint, the Ganeshpuri police registered a case of murder on May 13.

The investigation teams examined several CCTV recordings along the suspected escape routes and used advanced technical surveillance.

The police then traced the registration plate of a vehicle allegedly used by the assailants, leading to the arrest of three alleged contract killers -- Rakesh Bhagwan Patil (37), Premjit Madhukar Gharat (38), and Daksh Bhanukant Bhoir (24) -- from Palghar, the official said.

"During intense interrogation, the three persons confessed to their involvement in the killing. They revealed that the plot was masterminded by the victim's brother, Naresh Patil, who had lodged the initial police complaint to misguide the law enforcement agencies," he said.

According to the official, Naresh Patil confessed to hatching the conspiracy due to an ongoing property dispute with his elder brother and that he had offered Rs 10 lakh to the three accused to eliminate Paresh.

Naresh Patil has also been arrested, and a further probe is underway into the case, they added.